£1m Management Buy-Out of Glasgow's Groucho Saint Jude's

£1m Management Buy-Out of Glasgow's Groucho Saint Jude's The Scottish partnership of Bobby Paterson and Paul Wingate have successfully completed a management buy-out of their London partners, The Groucho Club, in a deal worth more than £1m. After several months of discussions with the London Club's new owners, led by Joel Cadbury, the deal has been agreed which will see the Glasgow operators taking the business forward independently under the name of Saint Jude's. Bobby and Paul secured a lucrative property deal to buy-out both their London partners and the current bankers. Since the London Groucho's sale last year to new owners, the Glasgow business has been increasingly operated independently. The venture aims to continue with its young media crowd bias which has allowed it to carve out a very successful niche in Glasgow's restaurant and bar scene. Commenting on the deal Bobby, responsible the company's operations and front of house at Groucho Saint Jude's, said: "There will be very little change to the day-to-day running of the company. When we first launched, we were initially wrongly tagged as a private club, but we have now built up a very loyal and discretely cool following who come back for good service, food and the company. Ironically, I get the feeling the regulars treat it like their club in any case. At a time when a number of restaurants are faltering our business is booming." Paul, the financial arm of the partnership, added: "We started out as sole partners in the Saint Jude's venture and at the time were very flattered and indeed grateful for the Groucho's interest in its development. Groucho has remained very supportive and we feel lucky to be able to buy-back what we launched several years ago and now take if forward on our own terms." The Groucho Club's Joel Cadbury commented: "We have enjoyed being part of establishing Groucho Saint Jude's in Glasgow which has proved to be hugely successful. Our strategy is now centred on London but I am pleased to say that our association is set to continue, with the members of our London Club still being able to enjoy preferential rates with the Glasgow venue." Ends 30 April 2002 More..... Page 2 ....contd - £1m Management Buy-Out of Glasgow's Groucho Saint Judes For further information, please contact: Karen Morrison at Citigate SMARTS on 0141 229 7634/07816 848 105 Notes to Editors 1. Groucho Saint Jude's opened in a blaze of publicity in 1999. The current Glasgow partners secured the lucrative joint-venture deal with the famous London club. The restaurant, bar and hotel has gone on to carve out an enviable reputation very much in its own right and has enjoyed several enviable accolades, including Harpers and Queen's 'second most fashionable restaurant outside of London' and a Vogue Gold's 'top 20 European cocktail bars'. ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/04/30/20020430BIT00500/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/04/30/20020430BIT00500/wkr0002.pdf